A new way to detect ecstasy has been discovered

A new method of detecting ecstasy has been discovered, which could improve the reliability and simplicity of testing for the drug in home kits and for professional operations such as The Loop.

The technique works by using an atom ball filled with molecules that are designed to exit the ball and light up when coming into contact with MDMA, and can then be detected by a sensor. If they do not come into contact with the active ingredient of ecstasy they remain dormant.

Researchers at the University of Southern Denmark, the Polytechnic University of Valencia, and the CIBER-BBN in Spain made the discovery, and claim it will mean the use of expensive advanced instruments in testing is no longer needed, as well as reducing waiting times for results and minimising the likelihood of false positives.

Jan O. Jeppesen, a chemistry professor at the University of Southern Denmark, said: “It is our impression that a need exists for more reliable, user-friendly and cheaper tests. What makes our method stand out is that it can detect even small traces."

More information of their findings can be found in a publishing paper in the Royal Society of Chemistry journal Chemical Communications.

[Via: Phys.org]

[Photo: MDMA Team]

Patrick Hinton is Mixmag's Digital Staff Writer, follow him on Twitter